St. Cloud-area cities find common ground on sales tax extension

A state law passed last year allows the cities to seek voter approval to extend a half-cent tax, which otherwise would expire in 2018. Until now, area cities leaders hadn’t agreed on which regional projects would be funded with revenues from the extension.
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Leaders of six St. Cloud-area cities have agreed on a framework to fund regional projects through an extension of their local sales tax, with funds going to a new aquatic center and airport and trail improvements, two of the cities’ mayors said Friday.

The agreement was reached Wednesday at a meeting of mayors and administrators from St. Cloud, Sartell, Sauk Rapids, St. Augusta, St. Joseph and Waite Park. That’s according to St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis and Waite Park Mayor Rick Miller, both of whom were at the meeting.

The deal could be a step forward for proponents of the sales-tax extension, who hope to put it before voters this fall. Councils in each of the area cities would have to approve the deal before it could go on the ballot.

A state law passed last year allows the cities to seek voter approval to extend the half-cent tax, which otherwise would expire in 2018. But until now, area cities leaders hadn’t agreed on which regional projects would be funded with revenues from the extension.

Miller said Friday that the agreement is imperfect but fair.

“This is an equitable split,” Miller said. “Is it the best for me or what I think? No. I think it addresses everybody’s needs.”

Kleis and Miller said they’ll get more feedback on the deal at a meeting of area cities leaders Tuesday.

Under the proposed framework, the first $900,000 collected each year by the sales tax extension, adding up to $18 million over 20 years, would be divided among the three regional projects, Miller and Kleis said.

Miller declined to disclose how the dollars would be distributed among the projects, saying that could change.

Kleis said the deal reached Wednesday was unanimous and sets aside $500,000 a year, or $10 million over 20 years, for trails. The funds would provide access from all six area cities to the Lake Wobegon Trail, in part by linking it to the Beaver Islands Trail in St. Cloud, Kleis said.

Of the remaining funds, $4 million, or $200,000 a year, would go to airport upgrades in its capital improvement plan. The other $4 million, or $200,000 a year, would go to the new aquatic center.

Kleis said the agreement to fund the aquatic center is significant because it shows a commitment to the project from all area cities.

“This will truly make the aquatic center regional by having all area cities participate,” Kleis said.

The aquatic center project will move forward no matter what other cities decide, though contributions from other cities could get it built faster and with more features.

St. Cloud residents already approved using $10 million in sales tax dollars to help build an aquatic center. The St. Cloud Area YMCA has partnered with the city to operate the center and raise an additional $10 million to build it.